Let’s start by getting one thing straight – whether retailers talk on social media or not, consumers are. With 1317 million users on Facebook and 271 million active Twitter users as of Q2 2014, our premise is not debatable anymore. And retail is one industry that is comprehensive of all individuals in some way or the other. Every single person is a potential customer.

Therefore, there are more ways in which Social Media and Analytics can help retailers to en-cash this opportunity and set up a direct connection with customers. And the greatest opportunity of all is the power of information. There are three key ways we can explain this:

• Hearing the customer’s voice quickly – It gets as fast as it can. Customers are buzzing social channels with their opinions, reviews and preferences. By collecting, merging and analysing this data, retailers can have a strong CRM strategy to act upon customer needs. They can also understand how products are faring with customers and accordingly decide on their product portfolios, positioning and promotion methods.
• Create effective content strategies – Imagine if a film maker new exactly what kind of story and presentation the market likes, there would probably more box office hits than now. Unfortunately, for them, it is still a huge guessing game. But in case of retail, customers openly voice out their wishes and dislikes. Analytic tools can assimilate the content received from customers and devise methods for strategizing and positioning content from retailers that suits the target audience temperament.
• En-cash the engagements – Retailers engage with customers on social media in many ways. Through effective content, initiatives or campaigns, customers connect with retailers and open better information windows. For instance, many ecommerce retailers organize treasure hunts, online quizzes and integrate them with the loyalty programs. Imagine the huge connect that can be established with such ease.

So, if you are still wondering whether social media and analytics can be avoided, don’t. And hurry before it gets too late in the race.